Administrative Remedy Program

By Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., and Christopher Zoukis, JD, MBA

Program Statement 1330.18 at a glance

Field	Value
Program Statement	1330.18
Subject	Administrative Remedy Program
Effective / current edition date	January 6, 2014. OPI: OGC/LIT. Signed by Director Charles E. Samuels, Jr.
Change notice	None. This edition has never been amended by a Change Notice.
Supersedes / rescinds	“P1330.17 Administrative Remedy Program (8/20/2012)” (PS 1330.18 at p. 2)
Governing statute	The Program is created by regulation, not by statute. The statute that makes it matter is 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a), the Prison Litigation Reform Act’s exhaustion requirement.
Governing regulation (28 C.F.R.)	28 C.F.R. part 542, subpart B — §§ 542.10 through 542.19. The Program Statement says so at p. 2: “Rules cited in this Program Statement are contained in 28 CFR 542.10 through 542.19; and 28 CFR Part 115 – Prison Rape Elimination Act National Standards.”
Related BP forms	BP-9 (BP-229), Request for Administrative Remedy — filed at the institution. BP-10 (BP-230), Regional Administrative Remedy Appeal. BP-11 (BP-231), Central Office Administrative Remedy Appeal. BP-A0148, Inmate Request to Staff — the “cop-out,” which in most institutions is how the informal-resolution step is documented. The Bureau does not publish the BP-9, BP-10 or BP-11 forms on bop.gov; they are distributed inside institutions.
Official PDF	PS 1330.18, Administrative Remedy Program

Checked against the BOP policy set · 2026-09-06.

The Administrative Remedy Program is the Bureau of Prisons’ internal complaint system: an informal attempt with staff, then a written Request to the Warden on a BP-9, then an appeal to the Regional Director on a BP-10, then a final appeal to the General Counsel on a BP-11. It matters far beyond the prison, because under the Prison Litigation Reform Act a federal court will usually not hear a claim about prison conditions until this process has been completed properly and on time.

This page is the map of the process and the deadlines. If you are dealing with a live grievance — a filing that was rejected, a deadline that may already have passed, a retaliation problem — start at prison grievances, which covers the practical side of getting a complaint through. Discipline appeals take a different first step and are covered at Inmate Discipline Program (PS 5270.09).

The rule itself: the BP-form set and the deadline table

Four tables. Table A is the deadline table, built from the binding regulation rather than from the Program Statement, because the regulation is what a court will apply. Table B is the form set. Table C is the four exceptions that skip the institution entirely. Table D is the rejection and resubmission rules. Everything in Tables A through D is regulatory text from 28 C.F.R. part 542, subpart B; where the Program Statement adds an implementing instruction, that is labeled as such.

Table A — every deadline in the Administrative Remedy Program

Step	Who it goes to	Your deadline to file	Their deadline to respond	Extension available
Informal resolution (commonly a BP-8; in most institutions documented on a BP-A0148 cop-out)	The staff member or unit team	No fixed deadline in the regulation, but it must be completed inside the 20-day BP-9 window	No fixed deadline	—
BP-9 · Request for Administrative Remedy (form BP-229)	The Warden — or the Community Corrections Manager for a person in a community facility	“20 calendar days following the date on which the basis for the Request occurred” — § 542.14(a)	“20 calendar days” — § 542.18	Response may be extended “once by 20 days at the institution level”
BP-10 · Regional Administrative Remedy Appeal (form BP-230)	The Regional Director	“within 20 calendar days of the date the Warden signed the response” — § 542.15(a)	“30 calendar days” — § 542.18	Response may be extended once by “30 days at the regional level”
BP-11 · Central Office Administrative Remedy Appeal (form BP-231)	The General Counsel, through the National Inmate Appeals Administrator	“within 30 calendar days of the date the Regional Director signed the response” — § 542.15(a). “Appeal to the General Counsel is the final administrative appeal.”	“40 calendar days” — § 542.18	Response may be extended once by “20 days at the Central Office level”
Emergency — a Request “of an emergency nature which threatens the inmate’s immediate health or welfare”	The Warden	Same 20-day rule	“The Warden shall respond not later than the third calendar day after filing” — § 542.18	—
Sexual abuse allegation under the Prison Rape Elimination Act	Any level	“The agency shall not impose a time limit on when an inmate may submit a grievance regarding an allegation of sexual abuse” — 28 C.F.R. § 115.52(b)(1)	“[A] final agency decision on the merits … within 90 days of the initial filing” — § 115.52(d)(1)	Up to 70 days, with written notice and a date certain
Imminent-risk sexual abuse emergency	The Warden, then up the chain	No time limit	Initial response “within 48 hours”; final agency decision “within five calendar days” — § 115.52(f)(2)	—

The rule that saves cases. 28 C.F.R. § 542.18: “If the inmate does not receive a response within the time allotted for reply, including extension, the inmate may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that level.” Silence is a denial you can appeal from. It is not a reason to wait.

Filing dates are receipt dates, not mailing dates, at the appeal levels. The Program Statement is explicit: “These deadlines specify the date of the Appeal’s receipt in the regional office or the Central Office. The deadlines have been made deliberately long to allow sufficient mail time. Inmates should mail their Appeals promptly after receiving a response to ensure timely receipt” (PS 1330.18 at p. 7). And “a Request or Appeal is considered filed on the date it is logged into the Administrative Remedy Index as received.”

Extensions of the filing deadline are available under § 542.14(b) “[w]here the inmate demonstrates a valid reason for delay,” which “means a situation which prevented the inmate from submitting the request within the established time frame.” The regulation names four: “an extended period in-transit during which the inmate was separated from documents needed to prepare the Request or Appeal; an extended period of time during which the inmate was physically incapable of preparing a Request or Appeal; an unusually long period taken for informal resolution attempts; indication by an inmate, verified by staff, that a response to the inmate’s request for copies of dispositions requested under § 542.19 of this part was delayed.” The same reasons extend the BP-10 and BP-11 deadlines under § 542.15(a). The Program Statement adds: “Ordinarily, the inmate should submit written verification from staff for any claimed reason for delay.”

Sources: 28 C.F.R. §§ 542.13–542.18, current text, and PS 1330.18 at pp. 4–9, 13–15.

Table B — the forms, and what each one does

Form	Official title	Where it goes	Space allowed
BP-A0148	Inmate Request to Staff (the “cop-out”)	A named staff member. This is how most institutions document the informal-resolution step.	One page
BP-9 (BP-229)	Request for Administrative Remedy	“appropriate for filing at the institution”	“[A] single complaint or a reasonable number of closely related issues,” plus “up to one letter-size (8 1/2″ by 11″) continuation page.” One extra copy of any continuation page; one copy of supporting exhibits
BP-10 (BP-230)	Regional Administrative Remedy Appeal	“appropriate for submitting an appeal to the regional office”	Same one-page continuation limit, plus “two additional copies of any continuation page and exhibits,” and “one complete copy or duplicate original of the institution Request and response”
BP-11 (BP-231)	Central Office Administrative Remedy Appeal	“appropriate for submitting an appeal to the Central Office”	Same one-page continuation limit, plus “three additional copies,” and “one complete copy or duplicate original of the institution and regional filings and their responses”

Four filing rules that decide more cases than the merits do:

• One issue per form. “The inmate shall place a single complaint or a reasonable number of closely related issues on the form. If the inmate includes on a single form multiple unrelated issues, the submission shall be rejected and returned without response.” For discipline appeals, “each separate incident report number must be appealed on a separate form.”
• Exhibits do not come back. “Exhibits will not be returned with the response. Because copies of exhibits must be filed for any appeal …, the inmate is encouraged to retain a copy of all exhibits for his or her personal records.”
• Nothing new on appeal. “An inmate may not raise in an Appeal issues not raised in the lower level filings. An inmate may not combine Appeals of separate lower level responses (different case numbers) into a single Appeal.”
• Nobody can file for you. § 542.16(a): an inmate “may obtain assistance from another inmate or from institution staff,” and “may also obtain assistance from outside sources, such as family members or attorneys. However, no person may submit a Request or Appeal on the inmate’s behalf, and obtaining assistance will not be considered a valid reason for exceeding a time limit for submission unless the delay was caused by staff.” Section 542.16(b): “Wardens shall ensure that assistance is available for inmates who are illiterate, disabled, or who are not functionally literate in English,” including “reasonable accommodation in order for an inmate with a disability to prepare and process a Request or an Appeal.” The single exception is a sexual-abuse allegation, where 28 C.F.R. § 115.52(e)(1) permits third parties — “fellow inmates, staff members, family members, attorneys, and outside advocates” — to file on the person’s behalf.

Sources: 28 C.F.R. §§ 542.14–542.16 and PS 1330.18 at pp. 5–8.

Table C — the four filings that skip the institution, § 542.14(d)

Exception	Where it goes instead, verbatim
Sensitive issues	“If the inmate reasonably believes the issue is sensitive and the inmate’s safety or well-being would be placed in danger if the Request became known at the institution, the inmate may submit the Request directly to the appropriate Regional Director. The inmate shall clearly mark ‘Sensitive’ upon the Request and explain, in writing, the reason for not submitting the Request at the institution. If the Regional Administrative Remedy Coordinator agrees that the Request is sensitive, the Request shall be accepted. Otherwise, the Request will not be accepted, and the inmate shall be advised in writing of that determination, without a return of the Request. The inmate may pursue the matter by submitting an Administrative Remedy Request locally to the Warden. The Warden shall allow a reasonable extension of time for such a resubmission.”
DHO appeals (discipline hearing officer)	“DHO appeals shall be submitted initially to the Regional Director for the region where the inmate is currently located.”
Control Unit appeals	“Appeals related to Executive Panel Reviews of Control Unit placement shall be submitted directly to the General Counsel.”
Controlled housing status appeals	“Appeals related to the Regional Director’s review of controlled housing status placement may be filed directly with the General Counsel.”

Informal resolution is not required before any of these, and is not required at all for people in community facilities: § 542.13(b) — “Inmates in CCCs are not required to attempt informal resolution. An informal resolution attempt is not required prior to submission to the Regional or Central Office as provided for in § 542.14(d) of this part. An informal resolution attempt may be waived in individual cases at the Warden or institution Administrative Remedy Coordinator’s discretion when the inmate demonstrates an acceptable reason for bypassing informal resolution.” The Program Statement adds two examples: “the Warden may waive informal resolution for Unit Discipline Committee (UDC) appeals, or when informal resolution is deemed inappropriate due to the issue’s sensitivity.”

Sources: 28 C.F.R. §§ 542.13–542.14 and PS 1330.18 at pp. 4, 6.

Table D — rejection and resubmission, § 542.17

Rule	Text, verbatim
(a) Who can reject, and why	“The Coordinator at any level (CCM, institution, region, Central Office) may reject and return to the inmate without response a Request or an Appeal that is written by an inmate in a manner that is obscene or abusive, or does not meet any other requirement of this part.”
(b) What you must be told	“When a submission is rejected, the inmate shall be provided a written notice, signed by the Administrative Remedy Coordinator, explaining the reason for rejection. If the defect on which the rejection is based is correctable, the notice shall inform the inmate of a reasonable time extension within which to correct the defect and resubmit the Request or Appeal.”
(c) Appealing a rejection	“When a Request or Appeal is rejected and the inmate is not given an opportunity to correct the defect and resubmit, the inmate may appeal the rejection, including a rejection on the basis of an exception as described in § 542.14(d), to the next appeal level. The Coordinator at that level may affirm the rejection, may direct that the submission be accepted at the lower level …, or may accept the submission for filing. The inmate shall be informed of the decision by delivery of either a receipt or rejection notice.”
Resubmission windows (policy)	“Ordinarily, five calendar days from the date of the notice to the inmate is reasonable for resubmission at the institution level; at least 10 calendar days at the CCM or regional offices; and 15 calendar days at the Central Office.”
What counts as correctable (policy)	“Defects such as failure to sign a submission, failure to submit the required copies of a Request, Appeal, or attachments, or failure to enclose the required single copy of lower level submissions are examples of correctable defects.”
Sensitive submissions (policy)	“Submissions for inmate claims which are too sensitive to be made known at the institution are not to be returned to the inmate. Only a rejection notice will be provided.”
The Bureau’s own instruction on flexibility (policy)	“When deciding whether to reject a submission, Coordinators, especially at the institution level, should be flexible, keeping in mind that major purposes of this Program are to solve problems and be responsive to issues inmates raise. Thus, for example, consideration should be given to accepting a Request or Appeal that raises a sensitive or problematic issue, such as medical treatment, sentence computation, or staff misconduct, even though that submission may be somewhat untimely.”

Sources: 28 C.F.R. § 542.17 and PS 1330.18 at pp. 8–9.

What the Administrative Remedy Program means for you

If you are the person inside: filing a remedy

Date everything and keep copies of everything. Under 28 C.F.R. § 542.14(a), the twenty-day clock runs from “the date on which the basis for the Request occurred” — not from when you learned the answer, not from when you gave up on informal resolution. Informal resolution has to happen inside that twenty days, which is why a cop-out that sits unanswered for three weeks is a trap. Send the BP-A0148 early, keep your copy, and if no answer comes, file the BP-9 anyway and say in it that you attempted informal resolution on a date certain and got no response.

Put one issue on one form. The regulation says a submission with “multiple unrelated issues … shall be rejected and returned without response,” and for discipline, “each separate incident report number must be appealed on a separate form.” You get the form plus one 8½ x 11 continuation page, so write the facts, the dates, the policy or regulation, and the specific relief you want — nothing else. Keep copies of every exhibit, because “[e]xhibits will not be returned with the response” and you will need them again at the BP-10 and BP-11.

If nobody answers, that is an answer. Section 542.18 says you “may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that level.” Do not sit on it — calculate the response deadline, add any extension you were notified of in writing, and appeal from that date. And if what comes back is a rejection notice rather than a response, read it carefully: if it does not offer you a chance to fix the defect, you can appeal the rejection itself to the next level under § 542.17(c).

Three routes skip the Warden. If raising the issue at the institution would put you in danger, mark it “Sensitive,” explain in writing why, and send it straight to the Regional Director. A DHO appeal also starts at the Regional Director, not the Warden. And a sexual-abuse allegation has no filing deadline at all and requires no informal resolution.

And three kinds of problem do not belong in this system at all. 28 C.F.R. § 542.10(c) routes tort claims — injury or lost property — to 28 C.F.R. part 543, subpart C; Inmate Accident Compensation claims to part 301; and Freedom of Information Act or Privacy Act requests to part 513, subpart D. Filing a BP-9 on one of those wastes the twenty days. The Program Statement says the Bureau “will refer the inmate to the appropriate statutorily-mandated procedures,” but it is faster to start in the right place: see Federal Tort Claims Act (PS 1320.07) and FOIA and Privacy Act requests (PS 1351.05). One more limit: the Program covers “any aspect of his/her own confinement,” and “[a]n inmate may not submit a Request or Appeal on behalf of another inmate.”

If you are a family member: why you cannot file

The hardest thing to accept about this system is that you cannot use it. 28 C.F.R. § 542.16(a) allows you to help — “[a]n inmate may also obtain assistance from outside sources, such as family members or attorneys” — but then says “no person may submit a Request or Appeal on the inmate’s behalf.” A letter from you to the Warden is not a BP-9, and it does not stop any clock. There is one exception, and it is important: for an allegation of sexual abuse, 28 C.F.R. § 115.52(e)(1) permits “family members, attorneys, and outside advocates” to file on the person’s behalf, subject to the facility requiring the person’s agreement.

What you can do is real work. Keep the calendar. Write down the date the problem happened, the date each filing went in, and the date each response was signed — those four dates decide most of what happens next. Send copies of documents in, because your relative’s copies get lost in transfers and exhibits are never returned. And if the person is illiterate, disabled, or not functionally literate in English, § 542.16(b) obliges the Warden to ensure assistance is available, including reasonable accommodation for a disability; that is a request worth making in writing and by name.

Understand the stakes before you decide this is not worth the trouble. Completing this process properly is usually a precondition to a federal court hearing a complaint about prison conditions at all, under 42 U.S.C. § 1997e(a). A grievance that gets rejected as untimely can end a lawsuit that has not been filed yet.

If you are counsel: administrative remedies

Two decisions govern everything you do with a client’s remedy file. In Woodford v. Ngo, 548 U.S. 81 (2006), the Supreme Court held “that proper exhaustion of administrative remedies is necessary,” and explained that “[p]roper exhaustion demands compliance with an agency’s deadlines and other critical procedural rules,” adopting the administrative-law standard of “using all steps that the agency holds out, and doing so properly (so that the agency addresses the issues on the merits).” A defaulted or untimely grievance therefore does not exhaust. In Ross v. Blake, 578 U.S. 632 (2016), the Court rejected any freestanding “special circumstances” exception — “mandatory exhaustion statutes like the PLRA establish mandatory exhaustion regimes, foreclosing judicial discretion” — but identified three circumstances in which a remedy is not “available”: where the procedure “operates as a simple dead end—with officers unable or consistently unwilling to provide any relief”; where the scheme is “so opaque that it becomes, practically speaking, incapable of use,” meaning “no ordinary prisoner can discern or navigate it”; and where “prison administrators thwart inmates from taking advantage of a grievance process through machination, misrepresentation, or intimidation.” Ross also cautions that “[w]hen an administrative process is susceptible of multiple reasonable interpretations, Congress has determined that the inmate should err on the side of exhaustion.”

Practical consequences. Build the availability record contemporaneously — refused forms, unanswered cop-outs, rejection notices without a correctable-defect option, threats — because Ross is a fact-intensive inquiry and the facts are inside the institution. Use § 542.18’s constructive-denial rule affirmatively rather than waiting; a client who waits past a nonresponse has an exhaustion problem, not a patience problem. Watch the receipt-date rule at the appeal levels: the Program Statement states that BP-10 and BP-11 deadlines “specify the date of the Appeal’s receipt in the regional office or the Central Office,” which is a mailbox-rule trap. And note the carve-outs in § 542.10(c) — tort claims go under 28 C.F.R. part 543, subpart C, Inmate Accident Compensation under part 301, and FOIA or Privacy Act requests under part 513, subpart D — so a client’s issue may not belong in this system at all. Finally, 28 C.F.R. § 542.19 makes the sanitized Administrative Remedy indexes and responses available to “[i]nmates and members of the public” — “for which inmate names and Register Numbers have been removed” — for inspection “during regular office hours” or purchase “in accordance with the regular fees established for copies furnished under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA)”; it is an underused source for showing how an issue has been decided across a region.

What changed from PS 1330.17

This edition replaced PS 1330.17 (8/20/2012), and the change that defines it is the addition of Section 16, Administrative Remedy Procedures Under the Prison Rape Elimination Act. The Department of Justice’s PREA national standards were published at 28 C.F.R. part 115, and 1330.18 folds § 115.52 into the Bureau’s grievance system. Four of its rules displace the ordinary process for sexual-abuse allegations, and each is quoted in the Program Statement’s own text: there is no time limit to file (“The agency shall not impose a time limit on when an inmate may submit a grievance regarding an allegation of sexual abuse,” and such remedies “shall not be rejected as untimely”); no informal resolution is required; a 90-day final agency decision is required, extendable by up to 70 days with written notice; and third parties, including family and attorneys, may file. An imminent-risk emergency grievance draws an initial response “within 48 hours” and a final decision “within five calendar days.” The Program Statement also directs the ordinary route for issues involving staff: “Matters in which specific staff involvement is alleged may not be investigated by either staff alleged to be involved or by staff under their supervision,” with physical-abuse allegations referred to the Office of Internal Affairs. See PREA and sexual abuse prevention (PS 5333.01) and reporting staff misconduct (PS 1210.26).

The regulation has not moved, and that is the important currency finding. Sections 542.10 through 542.19 were verified as the current text with a CFR effective date of 2016-12-29. Every deadline in Table A comes from that text, not from the 2014 Program Statement, and the two agree. Unlike the community-corrections and good-conduct-time statements in this section, PS 1330.18 has not been overtaken by an amendment to its own regulation.

What has changed is the case law and the cross-references. Ross v. Blake was decided in 2016, two years after this Program Statement issued, and it is now the framework for every argument about whether a remedy was “available.” The policies 1330.18 cross-references have also been reissued: it cites P5270.09 with a 2011 date (the current edition is PS 5270.09 CN-1, 11/18/2020), P1320.06 for the Federal Tort Claims Act (now PS 1320.07, 8/1/2024), P5324.11 for sexually abusive behavior (now PS 5333.01, 3/19/2026), and P4500.08 for the Trust Fund Manual (now PS 4500.13). The substance of the remedy process is unaffected; the documents it points at are newer.

One embedded settlement is worth knowing about. The Program Statement carries a special 120-day filing deadline “[i]n accord with the settlement in Washington v. Reno, and for such period of time as this settlement remains in effect,” for “a disputed telephone charge, credit, or telephone service problem for which the inmate requests reimbursement to his/her telephone account.” Telephone complaints that are not billing disputes — “telephone privileges, telephone lists, or telephone access” — remain on the ordinary 20-day clock. Whether that settlement remains in effect is not something this document establishes, and it is a question to confirm before relying on the longer period. See inmate telephone regulations (PS 5264.08).

Where people get stuck on the 20-day clock

The 20-day clock, and informal resolution eating it

This is the most common way a meritorious complaint dies. The deadline in § 542.14(a) is “20 calendar days following the date on which the basis for the Request occurred,” and informal resolution has to be completed inside it. So a cop-out sent on day 3 that receives no answer by day 19 does not extend anything on its own — you file the BP-9 on day 19 and state the attempt. The regulation does provide relief where “the inmate demonstrates a valid reason for delay,” and one of the four named reasons is “an unusually long period taken for informal resolution attempts,” but the Program Statement adds that “[o]rdinarily, the inmate should submit written verification from staff for any claimed reason for delay” — which is much easier to obtain before the deadline than after. Under Woodford v. Ngo, an untimely grievance is not proper exhaustion, so this is not a technicality.

A rejection instead of an answer

Rejections are not denials, and they are handled differently. Section 542.17(b) requires a written notice signed by the Administrative Remedy Coordinator explaining the reason, and requires that if the defect is correctable, the notice must tell you the time you have to fix and resubmit — ordinarily five days at the institution, at least ten at the regional office, fifteen at the Central Office. If a rejection gives you no chance to correct, § 542.17(c) lets you appeal the rejection itself to the next level, where the Coordinator “may affirm the rejection, may direct that the submission be accepted at the lower level …, or may accept the submission for filing.” Two things to check first: whether you put unrelated issues on one form, and whether you enclosed the required copies of the lower-level filings — those are the two most common correctable defects the policy names. Also read the Bureau’s own instruction that Coordinators “should be flexible” about medical treatment, sentence computation and staff-misconduct issues “even though that submission may be somewhat untimely,” and quote it back.

No response at all

Read § 542.18 again: “If the inmate does not receive a response within the time allotted for reply, including extension, the inmate may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that level.” That is a right to move, and moving is the safe course. Count 20 calendar days from the BP-9 filing date (the date it was logged into the index as received, not the date you handed it in), add 20 more if you received written notice of an extension — the Program Statement says “[n]otice of extension ordinarily is made via SENTRY notice” — and file the BP-10 from there. The same arithmetic runs at 30 plus 30 days at the region and 40 plus 20 at the Central Office. Waiting indefinitely for a response that is not coming is how people arrive at a courthouse with an unexhausted claim.

Retaliation, or a filing that is not safe to make locally

If raising an issue at the institution would endanger you, § 542.14(d)(1) is the route: mark the Request “Sensitive,” explain in writing why you are not filing it at the institution, and send it directly to the Regional Director. If the Regional Coordinator disagrees that it is sensitive, the Request “will not be accepted” and is not returned — only a rejection notice comes back — and you then file locally, with the Warden required to “allow a reasonable extension of time for such a resubmission.” Where the problem is that staff have obstructed the process rather than decided it, that is the Ross v. Blake question: whether officials “thwart inmates from taking advantage of a grievance process through machination, misrepresentation, or intimidation,” which renders the remedy unavailable. Document it as it happens — dates, names, what was said, what was refused. And where the underlying issue is designation, sentence computation, discipline or serious medical care, the grievance is only part of the work; those are consults, and the firm handles them nationwide.

Related BOP policy on administrative remedies

Page	What it covers
Prison grievances	The practical side of getting a complaint through the system
Request to Staff (PS 5511.08)	The BP-A0148 cop-out and the informal-resolution step
Inmate Discipline Program (PS 5270.09)	DHO appeals, which start at the Regional Director
Special Housing Units (PS 5270.12)	SHU placement and review, a frequent subject of BP-9s
Federal Tort Claims Act (PS 1320.07)	The separate route for injury and property claims, 28 C.F.R. part 543, subpart C
FOIA and Privacy Act requests (PS 1351.05)	The separate route for records, 28 C.F.R. part 513, subpart D
Inmate property claims (PS 5581.01)	Lost or damaged property
PREA and sexual abuse prevention (PS 5333.01)	The Bureau’s PREA program, which Section 16 connects to
Reporting staff misconduct (PS 1210.26)	Office of Internal Affairs referrals
Inmate telephone regulations (PS 5264.08)	The telephone billing disputes that carry a 120-day deadline
Compassionate release / reduction in sentence (PS 5050.51)	A request the administrative remedy system also touches: a Warden’s denial is appealed through this program, while a denial by the General Counsel or Director is final (PS 5050.51 § 11)
Halfway house placement (PS 7310.04)	A common BP-9 subject, with its own deadlines
Trust fund and commissary (PS 4500.13)	Account disputes, another common subject

Frequently Asked Questions About the Administrative Remedy Program

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Program Statement 1330.18 — full text

What follows is the Bureau’s own text, reproduced in full from its published PDF — nothing summarized, nothing cut. The official version is posted by the Bureau here: PS 1330.18 (PDF).

U.S. Department of Justice Federal Bureau of Prisons

PROGRAM STATEMENT

OPI: OGC/LIT NUMBER: 1330.18 DATE: January 6, 2014

Administrative Remedy Program

/s/ Approved: Charles E. Samuels, Jr. Director, Federal Bureau of Prisons

1. PURPOSE AND SCOPE §542.10

a. Purpose. The purpose of the Administrative Remedy Program is to allow an

inmate to seek formal review of an issue relating to any aspect of his/her own confinement. An inmate may not submit a Request or Appeal on behalf of another inmate. Inmates seeking a formal review of issues relating to sexual abuse should use the regulations promulgated by the Department of Justice under the Prison Rape Elimination Act, 42 U.S.C. § 15606, et seq. These procedures are provided in Section 16 of this Program Statement.

b. Scope. This Program applies to all inmates in institutions operated by the

Bureau of Prisons, to inmates designated to contract Community Corrections Centers (CCCs) under Bureau of Prisons responsibility, and to former inmates for issues that arose during their confinement. This Program does not apply to inmates confined in other non-federal facilities. The president of a recognized inmate organization may submit a request on behalf of that organization regarding an issue that specifically affects that organization.

c. Statutorily-mandated Procedures. There are statutorily-mandated procedures

in place for Tort claims (28 CFR 543, subpart C), Inmate Accident Compensation claims (28 CFR 301), and Freedom of Information Act or Privacy Act requests (28 CFR 513, subpart D). If an inmate raises an issue in a request or appeal that cannot be resolved through the Administrative Remedy Program, the Bureau will refer the inmate to the appropriate statutorily-mandated procedures.

Federal Regulations from 28 CFR are shown in this type. Implementing instructions are shown in this type.

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 2 2. PROGRAM OBJECTIVES. The expected results of this program are:

• A procedure will be available by which inmates will be able to have any issue related to their incarceration formally reviewed by high-level Bureau officials.
• Each request, including appeals, will be responded to within the time frames allowed.
• A record of Inmate Administrative Remedy Requests and Appeals will be maintained.
• Bureau policies will be more correctly interpreted and applied by staff.

3. DIRECTIVES AFFECTED

a. Directive Rescinded

b. Directives Referenced

P5214.04 HIV Positive Inmates Who Pose Danger to Other, Procedures for Handling of (2/4/98)

P5324.11 Sexually Abusive Behavior Prevention and Intervention Program (12/31/13) P5890.13 SENTRY – National On-Line Automated Information System (12/14/99)

28 CFR 301 Inmate Accident Compensation 28 CFR 16.10 Fees (for records requested pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA))

c. Rules cited in this Program Statement are contained in 28 CFR 542.10 through 542.19; and 28 CFR Part 115 – Prison Rape Elimination Act National Standards

4. STANDARDS REFERENCED

• American Correctional Association 3rd Edition Standards for Adult Correctional Institutions: 3-4236 and 3-4271
• American Correctional Association 3rd Edition Standards for Adult Local Detention Facilities: 3-ALDF-3C-22, and 3-ALDF-3E-11 5. 5. RESPONSIBILITY §542.11

a. The Community Corrections Manager (CCM), Warden, Regional Director, and

General Counsel are responsible for the implementation and operation of the Administrative Remedy Program at the Community Corrections Center (CCC), institution, regional and Central Office levels, respectively, and shall: (1) Establish procedures for receiving, recording, reviewing, investigating and responding to Administrative Remedy Requests (Requests) or Appeals (Appeals) submitted by an inmate;

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 3 See Section 13 for further information on remedy processing, including use of SENTRY. (2) Acknowledge receipt of a Request or Appeal by returning a receipt to the inmate; The receipt is generated via SENTRY. (3) Conduct an investigation into each Request or Appeal; (4) Respond to and sign all Requests or Appeals filed at their levels. At the regional level, signatory authority may be delegated to the Deputy Regional Director. At the Central Office level, signatory authority may be delegated to the National Inmate Appeals Administrator. Signatory authority extends to staff designated as acting in the capacities specified in this §542.11, but may not be further delegated without the written approval of the General Counsel. § 542.11 refers to Section 5 of this Program Statement. For purposes of this Program Statement, the term “institution” includes Community Corrections Centers (CCCs); the term “Warden” includes Camp Superintendents and Community Corrections Managers (CCMs) for Requests filed by CCC inmates; and the term “inmate” includes a former inmate who is entitled to use this program. (5) The Warden shall appoint one staff member, ordinarily above the department head level, as the Administrative Remedy Coordinator (Coordinator) and one person to serve as Administrative Remedy Clerk (Clerk). The Regional Director and the National Inmate Appeals Administrator, Office of General Counsel, shall be advised of these appointees and any subsequent changes. To coordinate the regional office program, each Regional Director shall also appoint an Administrative Remedy Coordinator of at least the Regional Administrator level, ordinarily the Regional Counsel, and an Administrative Remedy Clerk. The National Inmate Appeals Administrator, Office of General Counsel, shall be advised of these appointees and any subsequent changes. (6) The Administrative Remedy Coordinator shall monitor the program’s operation at the Coordinator’s location and shall ensure that appropriate staff (e,g., Clerk, unit staff) have the knowledge needed to operate the procedure. The Coordinator is responsible for signing any rejection notices and ensuring the accuracy of SENTRY entries; e.g., abstracts, subject codes, status codes, and dates. The Coordinator also shall serve as the primary point of contact for the Warden or Regional Director in discussions of Administrative Remedies appealed to higher levels. (7) The Administrative Remedy Clerk shall be responsible for all clerical processing of Administrative Remedies, for accurately maintaining the SENTRY index, and for generating SENTRY inmate notices. (8) The Unit Manager is responsible for ensuring that inmate notices (receipts, extension notices, and receipt disregard notices from institutions, regions and the Central Office) are printed and delivered daily for inmates in their units and for deleting those notices from

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 4 SENTRY promptly after delivery to the inmate. CCMs are responsible for this function for inmates under their supervision.

b. Inmates have the responsibility to use this Program in good faith and in an

honest and straightforward manner.

6. RESERVED

7. INFORMAL RESOLUTION §542.13

a. Informal Resolution. Except as provided in §542.13(b), an inmate shall first

present an issue of concern informally to staff, and staff shall attempt to informally resolve the issue before an inmate submits a Request for Administrative Remedy. Each warden shall establish procedures to allow for the informal resolution of inmate complaints. The Warden is responsible for ensuring that effective informal resolution procedures are in place and that good faith attempts at informal resolution are made in an orderly and timely manner by both inmates and staff. These procedures may not operate to limit inmate access to formal filing of a Request.

b. Exceptions. Inmates in CCCs are not required to attempt informal resolution.

An informal resolution attempt is not required prior to submission to the regional or Central Office as provided for in §542.14(d) of this part. An informal resolution attempt may be waived in individual cases at the Warden or institution Administrative Remedy Coordinator’s discretion when the inmate demonstrates an acceptable reason for bypassing informal resolution. For example, the Warden may waive informal resolution for Unit Discipline Committee (UDC) appeals, or when informal resolution is deemed inappropriate due to the issue’s sensitivity. Although not mandatory, inmates may attempt informal resolution of DHO decisions. See the Program Statement Inmate Discipline Program. 8. INITIAL FILING §542.14

a. Submission. The deadline for completion of informal resolution and

submission of a formal written Administrative Remedy Request, on the appropriate form (BP-9), is 20 calendar days following the date on which the basis for the Request occurred. In accord with the settlement in Washington v. Reno, and for such period of time as this settlement remains in effect, the deadline for completing informal resolution and submitting a formal written Administrative Remedy Request, on the appropriate form (BP-9) (BP-229), for a disputed telephone charge, credit, or telephone service problem for which the inmate requests reimbursement to his/her telephone account, is 120 days from the date of the disputed telephone charge, credit, or telephone service problem. Administrative Remedy Requests concerning telephone issues that do not involve billing disputes or requests for refunds for telephone service problems (such as Administrative Remedy

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 5 Requests concerning telephone privileges, telephone lists, or telephone access) are governed by the 20-day filing deadline.

b. Extension. Where the inmate demonstrates a valid reason for delay, an

extension in filing time may be allowed. In general, valid reason for delay means a situation which prevented the inmate from submitting the request within the established time frame. Valid reasons for delay include the following: an extended period in-transit during which the inmate was separated from documents needed to prepare the Request or Appeal; an extended period of time during which the inmate was physically incapable of preparing a Request or Appeal; an unusually long period taken for informal resolution attempts; indication by an inmate, verified by staff, that a response to the inmate’s request for copies of dispositions requested under §542.19 of this part was delayed. Ordinarily, the inmate should submit written verification from staff for any claimed reason for delay. If an inmate requests an Administrative Remedy form but has not attempted informal resolution, staff should counsel the inmate that informal resolution is ordinarily required. If the inmate nevertheless refuses to present a request informally, staff should provide the form for a formal Request. Upon receipt of the inmate’s submission, the Coordinator shall accept the Request if, in the Coordinator’s discretion, informal resolution was bypassed for valid reasons, or may reject it if there are no valid reasons for bypassing informal resolution.

c. Form

(1) The inmate shall obtain the appropriate form from CCC staff or institution staff (ordinarily, the correctional counselor). The following forms are appropriate:

• Request for Administrative Remedy, Form BP-9 (BP-229), is appropriate for filing at the institution.
• Regional Administrative Remedy Appeal, Form BP-10 (BP-230), is appropriate for submitting an appeal to the regional office.
• Central Office Administrative Remedy Appeal, Form BP-11 (BP-231), is appropriate for submitting an appeal to the Central Office. (2) The inmate shall place a single complaint or a reasonable number of closely related issues on the form. If the inmate includes on a single form multiple unrelated issues, the submission shall be rejected and returned without response, and the inmate shall be advised to use a separate form for each unrelated issue. For DHO and UDC appeals, each separate incident report number must be appealed on a separate form. Placing a single issue or closely related issues on a single form facilitates indexing, and promotes efficient, timely and comprehensive attention to the issues raised.

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 6 (3) The inmate shall complete the form with all requested identifying information and shall state the complaint in the space provided on the form. If more space is needed, the inmate may use up to one letter-size (8 1/2″ by 11″) continuation page. The inmate must provide an additional copy of any continuation page. The inmate must submit one copy of supporting exhibits. Exhibits will not be returned with the response. Because copies of exhibits must be filed for any appeal (see § 542.15 (b) (3)), the inmate is encouraged to retain a copy of all exhibits for his or her personal records. (4) The inmate shall date and sign the Request and submit it to the institution staff member designated to receive such Requests (ordinarily a correctional counselor). CCC inmates may mail their Requests to the CCM.

d. Exceptions to Initial Filing at Institution

(1) Sensitive Issues. If the inmate reasonably believes the issue is sensitive and the inmate’s safety or well-being would be placed in danger if the Request became known at the institution, the inmate may submit the Request directly to the appropriate Regional Director. The inmate shall clearly mark “Sensitive” upon the Request and explain, in writing, the reason for not submitting the Request at the institution. If the Regional Administrative Remedy Coordinator agrees that the Request is sensitive, the Request shall be accepted. Otherwise, the Request will not be accepted, and the inmate shall be advised in writing of that determination, without a return of the Request. The inmate may pursue the matter by submitting an Administrative Remedy Request locally to the Warden. The Warden shall allow a reasonable extension of time for such a resubmission. (2) DHO Appeals. DHO appeals shall be submitted initially to the Regional Director for the region where the inmate is currently located. See the Program Statement Inmate Discipline Program. (3) Control Unit Appeals. Appeals related to Executive Panel Reviews of Control Unit placement shall be submitted directly to the General Counsel. See the Program Statement Control Unit Programs. (4) Controlled Housing Status Appeals. Appeals related to the Regional Director’s review of controlled housing status placement may be filed directly with the General Counsel. See the Program Statement Procedures for Handling HIV Positive Inmates Who Pose Danger to Other. 9. APPEALS § 542.15

a. Submission. An inmate who is not satisfied with the Warden’s response may

submit an Appeal on the appropriate form (BP-10) to the appropriate Regional

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 7 Director within 20 calendar days of the date the Warden signed the response. An inmate who is not satisfied with the Regional Director’s response may submit an Appeal on the appropriate form (BP-11) to the General Counsel within 30 calendar days of the date the Regional Director signed the response. When the inmate demonstrates a valid reason for delay, these time limits may be extended. Valid reasons for delay include those situations described in §542.14(b) of this part. Appeal to the General Counsel is the final administrative appeal. These deadlines specify the date of the Appeal’s receipt in the regional office or the Central Office. The deadlines have been made deliberately long to allow sufficient mail time. Inmates should mail their Appeals promptly after receiving a response to ensure timely receipt. Ordinarily, the inmate must submit written verification from institution staff for any reason for delay that cannot be verified through SENTRY. In many cases, courts require a proper Appeal to the General Counsel before an inmate may pursue the complaint in court.

b. Form

(1) Appeals to the Regional Director shall be submitted on the form designed for regional Appeals (BP-10) and accompanied by one complete copy or duplicate original of the institution Request and response. Appeals to the General Counsel shall be submitted on the form designed for Central Office Appeals (BP-11) and accompanied by one complete copy or duplicate original of the institution and regional filings and their responses. Appeals shall state specifically the reason for appeal. (2) An inmate may not raise in an Appeal issues not raised in the lower level filings. An inmate may not combine Appeals of separate lower level responses (different case numbers) into a single Appeal. (3) An inmate shall complete the appropriate form with all requested identifying information and shall state the reasons for the Appeal in the space provided on the form. If more space is needed, the inmate may use up to one letter-size (8 1/2″ x 11″) continuation page. The inmate shall provide two additional copies of any continuation page and exhibits with the regional Appeal, and three additional copies with an Appeal to the Central Office (the inmate is also to provide copies of exhibits used at the prior level(s) of appeal). The inmate shall date and sign the Appeal and mail it to the appropriate Regional Director, if a Regional Appeal, or to the National Inmate Appeals Administrator, Office of General Counsel, if a Central Office Appeal (see 28 CFR part 503 for addresses of the Central Office and Regional Offices). c. Processing. The appropriate regional office to process the Appeal is the regional office for the institution where the inmate is confined at the time of mailing the Appeal, regardless of the institution that responded to the institution filing.

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 8 10. ASSISTANCE §542.16

a. An inmate may obtain assistance from another inmate or from institution staff

in preparing a Request or an Appeal. An inmate may also obtain assistance from outside sources, such as family members or attorneys. However, no person may submit a Request or Appeal on the inmate’s behalf, and obtaining assistance will not be considered a valid reason for exceeding a time limit for submission unless the delay was caused by staff.

b. Wardens shall ensure that assistance is available for inmates who are

illiterate, disabled, or who are not functionally literate in English. Such assistance includes provision of reasonable accommodation in order for an inmate with a disability to prepare and process a Request or an Appeal. For example, Wardens must ensure that staff (ordinarily unit staff) provide assistance in the preparation or submission of an Administrative Remedy or an Appeal upon being contacted by such inmates that they are experiencing a problem. 11. RESUBMISSION §542.17

a. Rejections. The Coordinator at any level (CCM, institution, region, Central

Office) may reject and return to the inmate without response a Request or an Appeal that is written by an inmate in a manner that is obscene or abusive, or does not meet any other requirement of this part.

b. Notice. When a submission is rejected, the inmate shall be provided a written

notice, signed by the Administrative Remedy Coordinator, explaining the reason for rejection. If the defect on which the rejection is based is correctable, the notice shall inform the inmate of a reasonable time extension within which to correct the defect and resubmit the Request or Appeal. (1) Sensitive Submissions. Submissions for inmate claims which are too sensitive to be made known at the institution are not to be returned to the inmate. Only a rejection notice will be provided to the inmate. However, other rejected submissions ordinarily will be returned to the inmate with the rejection notice. (2) Defects. Defects such as failure to sign a submission, failure to submit the required copies of a Request, Appeal, or attachments, or failure to enclose the required single copy of lower level submissions are examples of correctable defects. Ordinarily, five calendar days from the date of the notice to the inmate is reasonable for resubmission at the institution level; at least 10 calendar days at the CCM or regional offices; and 15 calendar days at the Central Office. (3) Criteria for Rejection. When deciding whether to reject a submission, Coordinators, especially at the institution level, should be flexible, keeping in mind that major purposes of this Program are to solve problems and be responsive to issues inmates raise. Thus, for example, consideration should be given to accepting a Request or Appeal that raises a sensitive or

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 9 problematic issue, such as medical treatment, sentence computation, or staff misconduct, even though that submission may be somewhat untimely.

c. Appeal of Rejections. When a Request or Appeal is rejected and the inmate is

not given an opportunity to correct the defect and resubmit, the inmate may appeal the rejection, including a rejection on the basis of an exception as described in §542.14 (d), to the next appeal level. The Coordinator at that level may affirm the rejection, may direct that the submission be accepted at the lower level (either upon the inmate’s resubmission or direct return to that lower level), or may accept the submission for filing. The inmate shall be informed of the decision by delivery of either a receipt or rejection notice. 12. RESPONSE TIME §542.18 If accepted, a Request or Appeal is considered filed on the date it is logged into the Administrative Remedy Index as received. Once filed, response shall be made by the Warden or CCM within 20 calendar days; by the Regional Director within 30 calendar days; and by the General Counsel within 40 calendar days. If the Request is determined to be of an emergency nature which threatens the inmate’s immediate health or welfare, the Warden shall respond not later than the third calendar day after filing. If the time period for response to a Request or Appeal is insufficient to make an appropriate decision, the time for response may be extended once by 20 days at the institution level, 30 days at the regional level, or 20 days at the Central Office level. Staff shall inform the inmate of this extension in writing. Staff shall respond in writing to all filed Requests or Appeals. If the inmate does not receive a response within the time allotted for reply, including extension, the inmate may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that level. The date a Request or an Appeal is received in the Administrative Remedy index is entered into SENTRY as the “Date Rcv”, and should be the date it is first received and date-stamped in the Administrative Remedy Clerk’s office. Notice of extension ordinarily is made via SENTRY notice.

13. REMEDY PROCESSING

a. Receipt. Upon receiving a Request or Appeal, the Administrative Remedy Clerk shall stamp

the form with the date received, log it into the SENTRY index as received on that date, and write the “Remedy ID” as assigned by SENTRY on the form. Once a submission is entered into the system, any subsequent submissions or appeals of that case shall be entered into SENTRY using the same Case Number. The “Case Number” is the purely numerical part of the “Remedy ID” which precedes the hyphen and “Submission ID.” All submissions received by the Clerk, whether accepted or rejected, shall be entered into SENTRY in accordance with the SENTRY Administrative Remedy Technical Reference Manual. Sensitive issues, when the inmate claims that his or her safety or well-being would be placed in danger if it became known at the institution that the inmate was pursuing the issue, should be

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 10 withheld from logging in until answered and/or should be logged into SENTRY with sufficient vagueness as to subject code and abstract to accommodate the inmate’s concerns. A Request should be submitted and logged in at the institution where the inmate is housed at the time the inmate gives the Request to the counselor or other appropriate staff member. If the event(s) occurred at a previous institution, staff at that previous institution shall provide, promptly upon request, any investigation or other assistance needed by the institution answering the Request. If an inmate is transferred after giving the Request to a staff member, but before that Request is logged in or answered, the institution where the Request was first given to a staff member remains responsible for logging and responding to that Request.

b. Investigation and Response Preparation. The Clerk or Coordinator shall assign each filed

Request or Appeal for investigation and response preparation. Matters in which specific staff involvement is alleged may not be investigated by either staff alleged to be involved or by staff under their supervision. Allegations of physical abuse by staff shall be referred to the Office of Internal Affairs (OIA) in accordance with procedures established for such referrals. Where appropriate; e.g., when OIA or another agency is assuming primary responsibility for investigating the allegations, the response to the Request or Appeal may be an interim response and need not be delayed pending the outcome of the other investigation. Requests or Appeals shall be investigated thoroughly, and all relevant information developed in the investigation shall ordinarily be supported by written documents or notes of the investigator’s findings. Notes should be sufficiently detailed to show the name, title, and location of the information provided, the date the information was provided, and a full description of the information provided. Such documents and notes shall be retained with the case file copy. When deemed necessary in the investigator’s discretion, the investigator may request a written statement from another staff member regarding matters raised in the Request or Appeal. Requested staff shall provide such statements promptly. For a disciplinary Appeal, a complete copy of the appealed disciplinary actions record shall be maintained with the Appeal file copy.

c. Responses. Responses ordinarily shall be on the form designed for that purpose, and shall

state the decision reached and the reasons for the decision. The first sentence or two of a response shall be a brief abstract of the inmate’s Request or Appeal, from which the SENTRY abstract should be drawn. This abstract should be complete, but as brief as possible. The remainder of the response should answer completely the Request or Appeal, be accurate and factual, and contain no extraneous information. The response should be written to be released to any inmate and the general public under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) and the Privacy Act. Inmate names shall not be used in responses, and staff and other names may not be used unless absolutely essential. Program Statements, Operations Memoranda, regulations, and statutes shall be referred to in responses whenever applicable, including section numbers on which the response relies.

d. Response Time Limits. Responses shall be made as required in Section 12 of this Program

Statement.

e. Index Completion. When a response is completed, the Clerk shall update SENTRY in

accordance with the SENTRY Administrative Remedy Manual and the instructions in

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 11 Attachment A. Particular attention should be paid to updating the status date, code, and reason, and to making any changes to the subject code and abstract indicated by the Coordinator or by the response drafter. The abstract shall be taken from the response’s first paragraph. Abbreviations may be liberally used, as long as they are easily understood, to allow as complete a description of the issue in the 50 characters allotted. For consistency, the Administrative Remedy Coordinator shall approve the closing entry, including the subject codes, status code and reason, and abstract, before the closing entry is made by the Clerk.

f. Response Distribution. For an institution response, one copy of the complete Request and

response shall be maintained in the Warden’s Administrative Remedy File together with all supporting material. Three copies shall be returned to the inmate. An inmate who subsequently appeals to the regional or Central Office shall submit one copy with each appeal. One copy of a Regional Appeal and response shall be retained at the regional office. One copy shall be sent to the Warden at the original filing location. The remaining two copies shall be returned to the inmate; one to submit in case of subsequent appeal to the Central Office, and one to retain. One copy of a Central Office Appeal and response will be returned to the inmate. One copy will be retained in the Central Office Administrative Remedy File, one copy will be forwarded to the regional office where the Regional Appeal was answered, and one to the Warden’s Administrative Remedy File at the original filing location.

g. File Maintenance. The Warden’s Administrative Remedy File and Administrative Remedy

Files at the Regional Offices and Central Office shall be maintained in a manner that assures case files are readily accessible to respond to inquiries from Federal Bureau of Prisons staff, inmates, and the public. Institutions shall file Regional and Central Office response copies with the inmate’s institution submission copy. Regional offices shall file copies of Central Office responses with the inmate’s Regional Appeal file. Each location shall maintain copies of supporting material and investigation notes with the case file. When a Regional or Central Office Appeal was not preceded by a lower level filing, the institution and regional copies shall be filed at the institution and region having responsibility for the inmate at the time of response. To provide information and feedback, Wardens and Regional Directors are encouraged to route response file copies from subsequent appeal levels to the Coordinator and the appropriate department head or person who investigated and drafted the response at their respective levels. 14. ACCESS TO INDEXES AND RESPONSES §542.19 Inmates and members of the public may request access to Administrative Remedy indexes and responses, for which inmate names and Register Numbers have been removed, as indicated below. Each institution shall make available its index, and the indexes of its regional office and the Central Office. Each regional office shall make available its index, the indexes of all institutions in its region, and the index of the Central Office. The Central Office shall make available its index and the indexes of all institutions and regional offices. Responses may be requested from the location where they are maintained and must be identified by

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 12 Remedy ID number as indicated on an index. Copies of indexes or responses may be inspected during regular office hours at the locations indicated above, or may be purchased in accordance with the regular fees established for copies furnished under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). At present, fees are detailed in 28 CFR § 16.10, which specifies a charge of $.10 per page duplicated and no charge for the first 100 pages. Staff shall forward funds received for purchase of index and response copies to the FOIA/Privacy Act Section, Office of General Counsel, Central Office. Any location may produce its index or that of another location by making the appropriate entries on a SENTRY retrieval transaction, and specifying the “SAN” (sanitized) output format.

15. RECORDS MAINTENANCE AND DISPOSAL

a. Disposal Authority. The authority for Administrative Remedy records disposal is the “job

number” NC1-129-83-07 provided by the National Archives.

b. Administrative Remedy Indexes. SENTRY Administrative Remedy indexes shall be

maintained in computer-accessible form for 20 years, then destroyed. Pre-SENTRY indexes shall be maintained at the site of creation for 20 years, then destroyed.

c. Administrative Remedy Case Files. Administrative Remedy Case Files shall be destroyed

three full years after the year in which the cases were completed (i.e., response completed). For cases submitted since implementation of the SENTRY module (July 1990), at the end of each calendar year (beginning at end of 1993), run SENTRY index retrieval transactions to identify the lowest case number for cases answered (status = cl* and status date in the appropriate range) during the calendar year ended three years previously. Cases below that number must be destroyed. Thus, cases answered in 1990 would be destroyed at the end of 1993; cases answered in 1991 would be destroyed at the end of 1994, etc. To identify the lowest case number for cases answered during a given year, it may be necessary to check indexes with “Date Received” in the year in question as well as those with “Date Received” in the previous year. Cases maintained under the pre-SENTRY numbering and filing system should be destroyed according to the following schedule: YEAR OF CASE # DESTROY AT END OF

16. ADMINISTRATIVE REMEDY PROCEDURES UNDER THE PRISON RAPE

ELIMINATION ACT (PREA)

Title 42 U.S.C. §15607 (a) required the Attorney General to publish a final rule adopting national standards for the detection, prevention, reduction, and punishment of prison rape. Title 42 USC § 15607(b) states that the national standards shall apply immediately to the Federal Bureau of Prisons upon adoption of the final rule. The final rule is published in Title 28 C.F.R. Part 115. This section only addresses administrative remedy procedures in relation to issues of sexual

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 13 abuse, and shall not constitute the sole response of the agency to allegations of sexual abuse. Appropriate steps to address the safety and security of inmates shall be made in accordance with the other provisions of the PREA regulations, and the Program Statement Sexually Abusive Behavior Prevention and Intervention Program.

§115.52 Exhaustion of administrative remedies. (a) An agency shall be exempt from this standard if it does not have administrative procedures to address inmate grievances regarding sexual abuse. The Federal Bureau of Prisons has an administrative remedy system, and therefore section 115.52 (a) does not apply. The following sections, 115.52 (b) through 115.52 (g), apply to inmates seeking a formal review of issues relating to sexual abuse. For any issue not specified in sections 115.52 (b) through 115.52 (g) below, the administrative remedy system outlined in Sections 1 through 15 of this Program Statement applies.

(b)(1) The agency shall not impose a time limit on when an inmate may submit a grievance regarding an allegation of sexual abuse. “Sexual abuse” is defined for the purposes of this section in 28 C.F.R. § 115.6, as referenced in the Bureau’s policy on Sexually Abusive Behavior Prevention and Intervention Program. Administrative remedies regarding allegations of sexual abuse may be filed at any time. For all other issues, the 20 calendar day period specified in Section 8 of this Program Statement shall be followed. Accordingly, administrative remedies regarding an allegation of sexual abuse shall not be rejected as untimely under Section 11 of this Program Statement, above. Once filed, the inmate should follow the time requirements for appeal, as stated in Section 9 of this Program Statement, above. (2) The agency may apply otherwise-applicable time limits on any portion of a grievance that does not allege an incident of sexual abuse. If the inmate includes on a single form multiple unrelated issues, the portion of the administrative remedy regarding allegations of sexual abuse should be accepted and processed. The inmate shall be advised to use a separate form for each unrelated issue. (3) The agency shall not require an inmate to use any informal grievance process, or to otherwise attempt to resolve with staff, an alleged incident of sexual abuse. Inmates are not required to attempt informal resolution under Section 7 of this Program Statement, above, regarding allegations of sexual abuse. (4) Nothing in this section shall restrict the agency’s ability to defend against an inmate lawsuit on the ground that the applicable statute of limitations has expired.

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 14

(c) The agency shall ensure that (1) an inmate who alleges sexual abuse may submit a grievance without submitting it to a staff member who is the subject of the complaint, and (2) such grievance is not referred to a staff member who is the subject of the complaint. Matters in which specific staff involvement is alleged may not be investigated by either staff alleged to be involved or by staff under their supervision. Allegations of physical abuse by staff shall be referred to the Office of Internal Affairs (OIA) in accordance with procedures established for such referrals. Where appropriate, e.g., when OIA or another agency is assuming primary responsibility for investigating the allegations, the response to the Request or Appeal may be an interim response and need not be delayed pending the outcome of the other investigation. (d)(1) The agency shall issue a final agency decision on the merits of any portion of a grievance alleging sexual abuse within 90 days of the initial filing of the grievance. (2) Computation of the 90-day time period shall not include time consumed by inmates during the course of an administrative appeal. (3) The agency may claim an extension of time to respond, of up to 70 days, if the normal time period for response is insufficient to make an appropriate decision. The agency shall notify the inmate in writing of any such extension and provide a date by which a decision will be made. (4) At any level of the administrative process, including the final level, if the inmate does not receive a response within the time allotted for reply, including any properly-noticed extension, the inmate may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that level. Time frames in this section are consistent with Section 12 of this Program Statement, above. (e)(1) Third parties, including fellow inmates, staff members, family members, attorneys, and outside advocates, shall be permitted to assist inmates in filing requests for administrative remedies relating to allegations of sexual abuse, and shall also be permitted to file such requests on behalf of inmates. (2) If a third party files such a request on behalf of an inmate, the facility may require as a condition of processing the request that the alleged victim agree to have the request filed on his or her behalf, and may also require the alleged victim to personally pursue any subsequent steps in the administrative remedy process. (3) If the inmate declines to have the request processed on his or her behalf, the agency shall document the inmate’s decision.

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 15 This section is applicable only to allegations of sexual abuse; inmates must personally file administrative remedies relating to other issues. The inmate’s approval of the remedy filed on his or her behalf shall be documented, and include the inmate’s signature. An inmate’s decision to decline to have the remedy processed on his or her behalf should also be documented, and include the inmate’s signature. The documentation should be retained in the agency Administrative Remedy File at the appropriate level and on Sentry in accordance with Section 13 of this Program Statement. Responses to third party remedies should be provided to the inmate who is the subject of the remedy. An inmate is required to personally file any subsequent appeal. However, the inmate may receive assistance in preparing the appeal in accordance with Section 10 of this Program Statement, above. (f)(1) The agency shall establish procedures for the filing of an emergency grievance where an inmate is subject to a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse. This section applies when an administrative remedy alleges a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse. If a remedy meets both of these criteria, the remedy will receive expedited processing, as described below. Section 12 of this Program Statement provides for an “emergency” administrative remedy as required by section 115.52(f). An expedited BP-9 (BP-229) response shall be provided if a remedy is determined to be of an emergency nature which threatens the inmate’s immediate health or welfare. See 28 C.F.R. § 542.18. The inmate shall clearly mark “Emergency” on the BP-9 (BP-229), and explain, in writing, the reason for filing as an emergency administrative remedy under this section. If an inmate files an emergency administrative remedy with the Warden, the local Administrative Remedy Coordinator shall make a determination as to whether the remedy alleges a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse. If the local Administrative Remedy Coordinator agrees that the administrative remedy meets the criteria for an emergency administrative remedy, the request shall be accepted, and receive expedited processing as stated below. If the remedy is rejected for failing to meet the criteria of an emergency grievance under this section, a rejection notice will be provided to the inmate, and the remedy will be processed in accordance with the usual time frames indicated above. (2) After receiving an emergency grievance alleging an inmate is subject to a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse, the agency shall immediately forward the grievance (or any portion thereof that alleges the substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse) to a level of review at which immediate corrective action may be taken, shall provide an initial response within 48 hours, and shall issue a final agency decision within five calendar days. The initial response and final agency decision shall document the agency’s determination whether the inmate is in

P1330.18 01/06/2014 Federal Regulations from 28 CFR: this type. Implementing instructions: this type. 16 substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse and the action taken in response to the emergency grievance. If an inmate files the emergency grievance with the institution under Section 12 of this Program Statement, above, alleging a substantial risk of imminent sexual abuse, an expedited BP-9 (BP- 229) response shall be provided within 48 hours. Best efforts to provide BP-10 (BP-230) and BP-11 (BP-231) responses within five calendar days should also be made in accordance with the provisions on exhaustion referenced above. If the inmate does not receive a response within the time allotted for reply, the inmate may consider the absence of a response to be a denial at that level. Inmates may also file “sensitive” administrative remedies under Section 8 of this Program Statement, above, regarding allegations of sexual abuse. If an inmate reasonably believes the issue is sensitive and the inmate’s safety or well-being would be placed in danger if the remedy became known at the institution, the inmate may submit the remedy directly to the appropriate Regional Director. See 28 C.F.R. § 542.14 (d) (1). “Sensitive” grievances should be processed in accordance with Section 8 and Section 11 of this Program Statement, and the expedited response times specified in this section do not apply. (g) The agency may discipline an inmate for filing a grievance related to alleged sexual abuse only where the agency demonstrates that the inmate filed the grievance in bad faith. The maintenance of an effective sexual abuse prevention policy, and general secure and orderly running of an institution, requires that inmates be held responsible for manipulative behavior and false allegations. Allegations of false reports will be considered by staff in accordance with the procedures and standards of the Inmate Discipline Program policy.

17. INSTITUTION SUPPLEMENT

Each Warden shall forward a copy of any Institution Supplement developed to implement this Program Statement to the Regional Administrative Remedy Coordinator and to the National Inmate Appeals Administrator in the Central Office. Records Retention Requirements Requirements and retention guidance for records and information applicable to this program are available in the Records and Information Disposition Schedule (RIDS) on Sallyport.

Reviewed for legal accuracy by Elizabeth Franklin-Best, Esq., Principal Attorney·September 2026